The Tale of Gyoda's Blooming Lotus
by The Other Sara
Summary: During SB3. After resigning from her position as a vassal, a young woman has decided to use the war to her advantage in pursuing her goals for revenge. However, her inexperience as a general may prove to be a hindrance.
1. Prologue

**The Tale of Musashi's Blooming Lotus**

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><p><strong>Prologue<strong>

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><p>The cries of soldiers were heard from all over the Musashi Province and the stench of blood could be smelled from the very edge of the battlefield. Fighting on one side was the army of the Hojo clan; the other, those that served Toyotomi Hideyoshi. For the Hojo clan and those who served them, things were not going so well. Hideyoshi had taken them by surprise and took the opportunity to send out a massive wave of soldiers at them. However, his vassal, Ishida Mitsunari, took some of his master's forces to attack Oshi Castle where many of the Hojo clan's reinforcements were coming from. And so, the battle raged on.<p>

Among the warriors fighting on the battlefield, there was a female soldier, no younger or older than the age of eighteen, struggling to fight her way through her enemies. Upon passing through the waves of Mitsunari's forces, the female soldier blocked an overhead slice with her bladed tonfa and then swung at the first attacker's stomach, allowing the blood to flow freely from his body as he collapsed to the ground. The next attacker that got in her way was swiftly cut across the chest as she passed by. After tackling another enemy to the ground and slicing his throat open, she noticed something in the distance: two familiar men that were battling furiously, one of them she recognized to be Ishida Mitsunari himself; and he was gaining the upper hand against the other man, her uncle. The latter struggled to defend himself against Mistunari's swift strikes, almost staggering each time their swords clashed against each other. But finally, her uncle's guard was broken and Mitsunari dealt four slashes across his body before stabbing him through the stomach. The female's eyes went wide and her mouth dropped as her uncle's body hit the ground. Mitsunari then sheathed his sword and began to walk away.

"Jisan*!" she shouted as she stood up and rushed over to her uncle's side.

"Kai... hime..." said her uncle in a weak and hoarse voice.

"Jisan, let me get help," said Kaihime. "You'll be alri– "

Before she could get help though, Kaihime's uncle stopped her by simply placing a hand on her shoulder. He then moved his hand to stroke her cheek.

"Little Kai..." he whispered with a smile. "How much you've grown."

"Nagachika-jisan?" asked Kaihime.

"Your father and I... we're... we're... we're so proud of you."

"What are you...?"

"I only wish... how I had you... for a daughter."

This took Kaihime by surprise and became speechless. Her throat then felt as if a strand of rope was tied tightly around her neck like a noose. The next thing she knew, tears were pouring down her face and she began sobbing quietly. Kai grabbed her uncle's hand on her cheek and held it. She didn't know what suddenly prompted her to act like this. She was used to not crying; it was very natural to her. Her uncle on the other hand simply held that peaceful smile of his.

"Kaihime... be... strong... take... care..." he said as his voice got quieter and his eyes slid shut.

Uncle Nagachika's body went limp and cold and his smile faded. In shock, Kaihime dropped his hand and stared at his now deceased body. She looked up for a moment and saw that Mitsunari, while a ways away from her, was still within a reasonable distance; meaning she could easily catch up to him. At the sight of him, her heart begant to feel it was being charred alive and her face turned from one of sorrow into seething rage even though tears were still falling from her eyes. She then stood and dashed towards the man responsible for her uncle's death. As she approached him, one of her bladed tonfas glowed blue and became cold in her hand; she was preparing for an ice attack.

"Mitsunari!" she screamed as she got closer to him.

The white haired man turned around and blocked Kaihime's attack, knocking the bladed tonfa out of her hand, causing it to freeze a small bit of ground it landed on in a blanket of ice. Kai, still blinded by rage, struck at him again with the remaining tonfa in her hand but he dodged to the side and swung at her face, slicing through her helmet and cutting her cheek. After a small yelp of pain, Kaihime ignored the sharp pain on her cheek and rushed at her enemy again. The white haired man easily blocked her next attack and held it. Just then, a soldier of his army approached.

"Mitsunari-sama!" he said.

Mitsunari sighed in irritation, broke the block and shoved the hilt of his katana into Kaihime's stomach, knocking the wind out of her. The pain was so great that she dropped her other tonfa and collapsed to the ground struggling to breathe. As Kai began to lose consciousness, she watched as Mitsunari turned to his subordinate and spoke with him.

"What is it?" he asked.

"It's Hideyoshi-sama!" said the soldier. "He's ordering us to withdraw!"

"What? Why?"

"Tokugawa Ieyasu... he's gathered an army and is rebelling against our lord!"

"...I should have known he was up to something. Alright, give the order to retreat immediately! We must regroup with Hideyoshi-sama!"

"Aye!"

Kaihime's world then fully faded to darkness as Mitsunari left her lying on the ground as if nothing had happened.

"Damn... you... Mitsunari..." she managed to say.

And then, she lost consciousness.

"...She's breathing!" said a voice.

"Kaihime-dono," said another. "Can you hear us?"

As light poured into her eyes and the world became clear, Kaihime groaned in pain. Her stomach was incredibly sore from having the wind knocked out of her and her cheek stung from being cut. Standing around her were several Hojo soldiers that seemed to have survived the fight. As she sat up and attempted to stand, one soldier took her arm and tried to help her on her feet... but she jerked her arm away.

"I'm fine," she said roughly. "I can stand."

She slowly stood up and clutched her stomach for a of her uncle's death plagued her mind. He was gone from her life forever... and there was nothing she could do to change it. Not only that, but judging from the Hojo soldiers' corpses that littered the field and the lack of any signs of Hideyoshi's forces only meant that he really did withdraw and that the Hojo forces had been bested in battle. The thought of it made her clench her fists. One of the soldiers took a step forward towards her.

"Ujimasa-sama requests your presence at his castle... he wants to see you immediately."

"Hojo Ujimasa-sama?" asked Kaihime, surprised.

As the daughter of a vassal for the Hojo clan, Kaihime had only met Ujimasa several times when she was younger. She didn't really get to know him as he would usually be working with her father, but the impressions she got from him usually weren't the best but not the worst either; long story short, he was a strange old man. But this was most certainly a surprise. Normally, her father would be the one Ujimasa would call in times of a crisis.

"Yes," he said. "Come, we must be on our way. But first, we should probably look at that cut on your cheek. If we don't do something about it, it might scar."

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><p>After a day's travel on horseback, Kaihime and the remnants of Ujimasa's forces that were temporarily under her uncle Nagachika's command had finally arrived at Odawara Castle. Due to Hideyoshi's attack, it was filled with much wreckage and people, survivors and the dead alike. Many of the people who took shelter inside were either being treated for their wounds or trying to repair the castle. The others, those that had died on the battlefield, were being mourned by their loved ones and prepared for their burials. Kaihime couldn't help but feel sympathy towards those who were grieving. Though she had seen dead soldiers many times before, every time it was still a sad sight to see.<p>

Upon entering the war room within the castle itself, Kaihime noticed that some of the seats were empty, which only meant that the generals that were to occupy them were defeated in battle or being treated for their injuries. However, the generals that made it to the meeting, including Fuma Kotaro, were present alongside their lord and master, Hojo Ujimasa.

"Ah, Kaihime," said Ujimasa. "Please, sit."

Kaihime did as she was told and sat. There was an uneasy air about everyone. The Hojo clan took quite a beating from Hideyoshi's forces. She assumed that there wouldn't be any fighting from them for a while. But that wasn't the only thing that was on her mind. She looked at the generals. Someone was missing from the table.

"Wait, where is my otousan*?" asked Kaihime.

Everyone looked at each other for a moment.

"Er, well..." muttered Ujimasa. "About that... after we were defeated, your otousan had decided to preserve his honor... and committ seppuku."

Kaihime gasped and lowered her head. First her uncle, and then her father? Her hands clenched her legs and she struggled not to lose control of her emotions.

"As per the tradition of the main branch of your clan, the Narita, the oldest child must inherit the position of being a vassal to the noble Hojo clan." explained Ujimasa.

"Is that why I'm here then...?" asked Kai, shoving down her emotions and beginning to settle down. "To take his place as a vassal?"

"Precisely," confirmed Ujimasa. "We will discuss the details of his funeral at a later time. For now, we need to find a way to get back on our feet and reclaim honor to the Hojo clan!"

Kaihime bit her lip. Apparently, the rumors surrounding Ujimasa were true; all he seemed to care about was restoring the Hojo clan were true. As the meeting went on, she found herself daydreaming of both her father and her uncle's deaths; how they must have suffered greatly in their final moments. The anger inside began to tighten her chest. Kai wasn't going to let this go unpunished. About half way through the meeting, she had made up her mind: she would go after Hideyoshi and his vassal, Mitsunari. But she couldn't do it alone. As much as it ashamed her, she would need the help of the Hojo clan's army.

"Hideyoshi!" shouted Kaihime, interrupting one of the generals as they were talking.

"Eh, what?" asked Ujimasa, confused.

"We need to defeat Toyotomi Hideyoshi," said Kai. "That's how we'll reclaim the Hojo family honor."

"Don't be ridiculous!" scoffed Ujimasa. "Hideyoshi has been dead as of yesterday, thanks to Tokugawa Ieyasu. The news has spread like wildfire."

Well, that was one less person to deal with.

"What about Ishida Mitsunari?" asked Kaihime.

"He's alive and – " started Ujimasa, who then looked at Kaihime with an astonished look. "Wait... you're planning to go after _him_?"

"I think it would be the best course of action if we –"

"Bah! Foolish child! You're just using this as an excuse to get revenge for your family!"

"And if I am? What then?"

"I will not allow it, that's what! It's far too risky."

"Or maybe you are just being a coward, old man!"

Everyone in the room gasped.

"How dare you?" barked Ujimasa. "You would dare show disrespect to the Hojo clan?"

"We have served you for long enough!" Kaihime snapped back. "As the new leader of the Narita clan, I make the decisions for my family, and I say as of now we hereby resign from being your vassals! I will defeat Ishida Mitsunari; with or without your help."

With that, Kaihime stood up and left the war room in a huff.

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><p><strong>Author's notes<strong>: (*jisan - "uncle" in Japanese (jiisan would be grandfather; it depends on the spelling). *otousan - father) Hello! I apologize for the sudden rush of drama. There will be comedy bits in the future. Also, I will be focusing on other characters like Masamune and Ieyasu and their point of view on things in the future. I apologize if my character comes across as a Mary Sue if she does seem like that to you. Hope you enjoyed the prologue!


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1  
><strong>

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><p><em>Two months later...<em>

Kaihime panted with exhaustion after taking out yet another soldier of Utsunomiya Hirotsuna's army. The whole area was covered in fog, leaving her soldiers (those who decided to leave the Hojo clan and pledge loyalty to Kaihime simply because they were once under her father and uncle's command) in confusion. One by one their numbers fell as Kai's small army continued to suffer from constant ambushes and tiger attacks. She heard someone approach her and got into a defensive stance, only to find it was one of her generals.

"My lady!" he said. "We can't hold them off forever. The fog is too thick. We can hardly see a thing!"

Kai heard another pair of footsteps behind her and turned to find an enemy soldier lunging at her with a spear. With her bladed tonfas, she cut off the spear head and then sliced the soldier across the throat, killing him. She then turned back to her commander.

"Well, what do you suppose we should do?" she asked.

"But you're the general! Shouldn't you be making the decisions?" asked her commander, baffled.

Kaihime lowered her head. She thought this commanding stuff would be easy. She figured that if she just gave out orders and that the rest would follow that everything would be fine. She never would have imagined that it would be this stressful. The next thing she knew, an explosion was heard, distracting her from her thoughts. It came from near by... and whatever it was that exploded, the fog seemed to be lifting because of it. Soon, she could see a shadow lingering near by.

"Yeah, that's right." said the shadow. "You're their general. Why don't you do your men a favor and call a retreat?"

"Wha..." asked Kai. "Who do you think you are to give _me_ orders?"

"None of your damn business, kid," replied the shadow. "Now give out the order to retreat and I'll cover you. Got it?"

Kaihime glared at the shadow and after a moment, sighed in defeat.

"Fine..." she muttered, then began to shout. "Narita forces! Full retreat! Retreat!"

The surviving soldiers that heard Kaihime's order began to withdraw from the Utsunomiya clan's fortress, struggling to find their way through the lifting fog. Several were killed in the process; whether it was being shot by arrows or being cut down. As the soldiers began to race out of the fortress doors, Kaihime made sure every surviving one was out of there before leaving herself.

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><p>They made camp in a wooded area about several miles away from the battlefield. Many of Kai's soldiers were either injured or exhausted. She too was starting to feel the fatigue. They had been fighting for a long time; about a couple of days she estimated. For the past two months, it had been loss after loss. But the young member of the Narita clan did not understand why. She sighed. Apparently, being a general was harder than she had anticipated. As Kaihime sat down beside a tree to rest, leaves fell from above her. She looked up to find a man standing on a tree branch. Just by how he appeared in a secretive fashion, she assumed that the man was a ninja.<p>

Though he wore a traditional black ninja hood and mask, the man wore a cloak that covered up most of his uniform, which consisted of a black and dull gray yamabushi hermit uniform. Kaihime brandished her bladed tonfa, thinking that he was an enemy.

"You're the general, am I right?" asked the man.

"Who are you?" she snapped. "What do you want?"

"Relax, kid," said the man casually. "I'm not here to fight you."

The man jumped down from the tree.

"Never before in my life have I seen a general as incompetent as you. You can't even figure out how to lead a squad properly. It's disgraceful."

Feeling insulted, Kai gritted her teeth and dropped her guard.

"Is that all?" she asked.

"No," said the man. "Here's the thing: I don't like you one bit. But, I figured I'd teach you how to be a general anyway."

Kaihime looked at the man with surprise.

"Help me? But why?" she asked.

"Who knows?" replied the man. "Perhaps it's out of the goodness of my heart. Or maybe... I just feel like it."

"Well, that's a straighforward answer." muttered Kai sarcastically as she sheathed her tonfas.

"But, don't think this will be easy. I may now be your second-in-command, but that doesn't mean I'll go soft on you."

"W-Wait, second-in-command?"

The man started to walk past Kaihime.

"Is there a problem?"

"Of course there is! First off, I don't remember saying you'd be my second-in-command. I don't even know your na-"

The man suddenly stopped walking.

"Hattori." he said.

Kai blinked.

"Huh?"

"My name. Hattori Hanzo. And there's no need to introduce yourself as well... Narita Kaihime."

"How do you know my..."

"I'm a ninja. How do you think I get my information?"

A moment of silence filled the forest. Kaihime admitted quietly to herself that she was caught by surprise. It was amazing what a ninja could learn through espionage. She sighed in defeat.

"Very well..." she muttered. "But only until we defeat Mitsunari."

Hanzo chuckled.

"Fair enough."

"So... what did you have in mind for your so-called '_training_'?"

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><p>"...Please tell me you're joking." muttered Kaihime.<p>

"Is there a problem?" asked Hanzo.

"So, while my men are recuperating... you want to teach me how to play shogi?" said Kaihime. "I don't see how being a general has anything to do with this."

"Idiot. Shogi is a strategy game. Think of it as a battlefield in the form of a board game."

The wooden shogi board sat on a wooden stump in the center of the campsite. Kai raised her brow. She wasn't sure what to make of this "_training session_". Whatever strategy Hanzo had up his sleeve, it was an odd one. After tossing a pawn and determining which player would be which color, Hanzo began laying out the wooden pieces of the game for both sides. Once he was finished, he looked at the young general.

"You know how to play?" he asked.

"Um, I've only seen my uncle and father play from time to time... so no." responded Kaihime.

Hanzo sighed.

"This is gonna be a long day." he muttered quietly. "Okay, so the object of the game is simple: capture the king piece without your opponent getting yours. Got it?"

"I... think so." said Kai.

"Alright, let's begin," nodded Hanzo. "Since you control the black pieces, you move first."

Kaihime looked down at the board and quickly made her first move, taking one of the pawns and moving it forward one space. A fair amount of what she remembered of the game itself was a blur, but she recalled some of the names of the pieces and how many spaces they could be moved. She also remembered one of the opening tactics, which was named the double wing attack. After the opening phase had passed, Kai noticed an odd formation taking place on Hanzo's side. He seemed to be concentrating on forming a perimeter around the king by placing it on the left side of the board and surrounding it with pieces.

"Wait," said Kaihime. "Can you actually do that?"

"Yes," replied Hanzo. "It's called the yagura* formation."

"Oh!" said Kaihime. "I've heard of this!"

"Good. Do you know what it does?"

"...No. But I don't think it should be too much of an issue. All I need to do is..."

A moment after she moved her pawn and ended her turn, Hanzo used one of his pieces to capture the pawn.

"There's more that you could do besides attacking head on." he said.

Kai pouted and the game continued. Turn after turn, Kai lost more and more pieces to Hanzo. It seemed like he was reading her every move. Over the course of an hour, she lost to him. She sighed in exasperation.

"You see why you lost?" asked Hanzo. "You lost because you kept charging at the front of my formation, making your attacks predictable. What you _should_ have done is have only a few pieces attack from the front while several other pieces attack from the side, the yagura formation's weakness."

Kai pouted again, making Hanzo's eyes narrow at her. He sighed and stood up.

"I think your men have rested enough," he said. "Come on. Let's try this again."

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><p><strong>Author's notes<strong> (*yagura = a castle formation in shogi) I apologize for the delay... vacation has _really_ messed up my writing schedule and I'm struggling to get back on track. I'll try to update my stories as much as possible.


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